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Brennanite posted:she realized as a child that if there was so much stuff in her room no one could get in, she wouldn't be raped. 
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Nov 23, 2015 23:37
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| # ? May 14, 2024 07:38 |
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D-did it work? 
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Nov 24, 2015 01:23
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SynthOrange posted:D-did it work? "I'm done, now go to your room".
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Nov 24, 2015 01:49
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Methylethylaldehyde posted:"I'm done, now go to your room".
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Nov 24, 2015 02:31
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Sooooo...... I went to go look at a house today and the panel was a Stab-Lok. How hard should I laugh at the seller?
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Nov 24, 2015 05:08
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Couple grand worth of guffaws at least. Seriously though it is fixable but you'd have to replace the panel to the tune of a thousand dollars or so plus the delays for permitting and inspection. Check with your homeowners insurance as well because some have started not underwriting houses with those breakers.
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Nov 24, 2015 05:25
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Bad Munki posted:Don't forget a USB charging port. Are those bad, or is it only in context ? I have two in my kitchen so that would be good to know.
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Nov 24, 2015 13:25
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There's nothing inherently wrong with a wall socket that has a built in USB charging port, but they tend to be gimmicks of unknown provenance and quality. Cheap USB chargers can cause electrocution or fire.
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Nov 24, 2015 13:41
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I had some cheap, lovely USB charger suddenly explode while it was plugged in. No injury but it scared the poo poo out of me and my coworker.
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Nov 24, 2015 13:44
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Ooh yeah, that makes sense. They're kinda useless anyways, most people have more than enough chargers. In the spirit of the thread, and since we're on the subject of exploding power sources, I was once helping my mother with her gardening when the water stopped (it is pumped from a well). her : Could you go wiggle the pump's plug a bit please ? It does that sometimes. me :  I went anyways, grabbed the past where the plug joined an extension cord, saw it was smoking and threw it right before it exploded. Turns out the contacts were all corroded because the extension cord wasn't made to be outside.
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Nov 24, 2015 14:14
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nota posted:Ooh yeah, that makes sense. They're kinda useless anyways, most people have more than enough chargers. While I have plenty of chargers, I bought an outlet with a USB charger built in because I'm so sick of having plugs, chargers, etc... that jut out from the wall. When you have a charger that's 2 inches long, PLUS the end of the SUB cord that's another inch or so, it gets annoying. I also got a right-angle adapter so that the cord will end up coming out straight down.:   Yeah, it'll block access to the bottom outlet, but I don't care, I won't use it. It's for right behind my bed's headboard, so I want it to be as flush as possible, and the only thing plugged in will be my and my GF's phones.
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Nov 24, 2015 16:51
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Crappy construction: putting USB ports in wall outlets. USB outlets should be at counter/table/desktop level.
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Nov 24, 2015 16:57
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Wait, you were sick of having stuff jutting out of the wall so you got an USB outlet and... Added an adapter that juts out of it ? I don't really get the logic here. I guess it's because you can fit two in the space of one phone charger, but still... If your concern is size and angle, you can find chargers that are not very different from your adapters (get then from a reliable source tho, like Samsung) Also having those cheap chinese adapters over your bed side by side could potentially cause a fire. I mean obviously I have no idea about the quality of those particular adapters but I've seen cheap USB extension cords that somehow could get pretty hot. Edit : redacted a part because I can't read. nota fucked around with this message at 17:48 on Nov 24, 2015 |
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Nov 24, 2015 17:42
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nota posted:Wait, you were sick of having stuff jutting out of the wall so you got an USB outlet and... Added an adapter that juts out of it ? I think we're all in agreement that the absolute worst way is like this:  That's with a regular outlet, standard USB charger where the port is on the end. That's sticking too far out from the wall, especially when I have my bed pushed up against it. It'll cause damage to the cord and charger. But if I just get the outlet and plug in my cord, it'll be like this:  That's still sticking the cord straight out, which can still cause damage. The adapter sends the cord straight down:  Much better. Edit: Yeah, I've seen some USB wall chargers that are actually right-angled already, or I could have tried to find a USB cable that was a right-angled USB A at one end and a micro USB at the other, but eh. What's done is done. DrBouvenstein fucked around with this message at 18:20 on Nov 24, 2015 |
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Nov 24, 2015 18:16
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Platystemon posted:Crappy construction: putting USB ports in wall outlets. Wall outlets can be and often are at a convenient level. I almost put one of those in my kitchen island, but ended up getting one of those six-way outlet splitter things that has two USB ports built in instead. It's a great place to leave my Kindle or charge my phone while watching TV.
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Nov 24, 2015 18:17
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https://youtu.be/xqtnNzIwyTE
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Nov 24, 2015 18:47
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Saw these a few weeks ago, usb charger faceplate, no wiring necessary. They look interesting. There is a metal clip on the back of the faceplate that hugs the wiring screws on the sides of the outlet. I'm not sure how robust of a connection that is but I'm guessing it passed some type of code to be a product. https://www.snappower.com/snappower-chargers/ 
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Nov 24, 2015 19:09
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mshade posted:I'm guessing it passed some type of code to be a product.
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Nov 24, 2015 19:12
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Well, according to their FAQ, they're UL/CUL approved, but ehh.
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Nov 24, 2015 19:16
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Collateral Damage posted:Don't bet on it. Just looked at the website and it says it's UL and CUL approved. The more I look at it, it seems quite clever. Also, this is supposed to be the crappy construction thread so here is a my story: After living in my house for 7 years, I had just had a new heating boiler installed for the winter. It got to 0 degrees F that winter, and my upstairs zone stopped getting heat. I called the boiler installer assuming it was an issue with the new boiler, but he came and told me the pipes were frozen. I was surprised that heating pipe would freeze but that did seem to be the case. Luckily after 24 hours the heat started flowing again and I turned up the thermostat for that zone for the rest of the winter (it was normally only running at night because during the day the downstairs would provide enough heat for the upstairs). My guess for where the pipes froze is where my upper level overhangs the first level for about 18 inches on the back of the house. So that spring I cut a large hole in the soffit there and took a look, and there was no insulation at all. I could see the copper heating pipe, and the subfloor above it, but no insulation anywhere. Thanks for not insulating an exterior surface, original builder, and thanks even more for running water pipes through it. I had to pull down the entire soffit and insulate everything, it was not enjoyable.
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Nov 24, 2015 19:26
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mshade posted:Saw these a few weeks ago, usb charger faceplate, no wiring necessary. They look interesting. There is a metal clip on the back of the faceplate that hugs the wiring screws on the sides of the outlet. I'm not sure how robust of a connection that is but I'm guessing it passed some type of code to be a product. drat, that actually could have been almost perfect. Though $20, and only has 1 USB port? C'mon, SnapPower, you could easily fit two on there! Edit: Oh, regarding real actual crappy construction: Bought the house in August. In the bathroom is a window in the shower area that is just COVERED in caulk. Like...every seam, every seal, even COMPLETELY covering the window latches. It was even squirted down between the stile and channel (do I have that terminology right?) Obviously, the previous owner was concerned about water getting in there, but this was overkill...or that is, would be overkill if he didn't do such a poo poo job. Pieces were falling apart when we moved in, and we could see it was done in layers, and there was mold under the most recent layer peeling up. This weekend, we finally got around to scraping off as much as we could, and water was TRAPPED inside the sill. A lot of it, too. VERY mildew-y. Thankfully, it doesn't seem to have gotten in the wall, simply going off the fact that the water was all still THERE and wasn't draining away anywhere. So now we're unsure what to do next. Temporarily, there's some plastic taped over it. I think we'll just have to get it completely replaced, because it was a poo poo installation job. The window wobbles in the...casing? Jamb? Frame? Whichever, and the window doesn't stay open. I mean, everything else in this bathroom was a half-assed, lovely looking DIY job, so I guess it makes sense the window was, too. That's probably why all the caulk. Got the window in, realized it was a poo poo job, and rather than re-do it or get a professional, just used three tubes of silicone. Here's my GF removing some of the last of it after we got the drat thing open:  You can also the lovely frosted applique/decal thing that was full of bubbles halfway through its removal. And yes, that's a bead of caulk around the edges of the frosted applique, as well. DrBouvenstein fucked around with this message at 21:05 on Nov 24, 2015 |
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Nov 24, 2015 19:30
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DrBouvenstein posted:You can also the lovely frosted applique/decal thing that was full of bubbles halfway through it's removal. And yes, that's a bead of caulk around the edges of the frosted applique, as well. My father bought an old house last year, and I couldn't stop laughing the first time I took a shower there, because what I first thought was a tinted applique on the shower door was in fact a protective film that should have been removed years ago. Now it's fused with the plastic window, excepted in the places where it's peeling or bubbling.
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Nov 24, 2015 20:43
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DrBouvenstein posted:drat, that actually could have been almost perfect. Was that tile installed by someone with Parkinson's, or what? Edit: That's not fair. I'm sure someone with Parkinson's could do a much better job.
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Nov 24, 2015 21:14
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KillHour posted:Was that tile installed by someone with Parkinson's, or what? Oh man, when I get home, I can take some pictures that make THAT portion of the tile job look good! The bathroom was originally the first thing on our list to renovate, but the fence in the backyard went south a LOT sooner than we expected, so that's #1 this spring. We could "piece-mail" it and just replace the one side that's really bad now, and the rest later, but easier to get it all done in one go. Edit: Here we go. Just inside the doorway, next to the sink:  (sorry for the Dutch angle.) To the left of the sink, above toilet:  Even the drat toilet paper holder is poo poo: 
DrBouvenstein fucked around with this message at 01:02 on Nov 25, 2015 |
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Nov 24, 2015 21:23
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mshade posted:Saw these a few weeks ago, usb charger faceplate, no wiring necessary. They look interesting. There is a metal clip on the back of the faceplate that hugs the wiring screws on the sides of the outlet. I'm not sure how robust of a connection that is but I'm guessing it passed some type of code to be a product. 1 port and only 5V@1A. I'll stick with the Anker for now.
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Nov 24, 2015 21:30
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DrBouvenstein posted:While I have plenty of chargers, I bought an outlet with a USB charger built in because I'm so sick of having plugs, chargers, etc... that jut out from the wall. When you have a charger that's 2 inches long, PLUS the end of the SUB cord that's another inch or so, it gets annoying. Buy them built into the cable. You would probably want one each of up angle A and down angle A.
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Nov 25, 2015 01:13
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kid sinister posted:Buy them built into the cable. You would probably want one each of up angle A and down angle A. Good idea in general, but it looks like the adapter DrBouvenstein posted has a much lower profile than the right angle cables you linked.
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Nov 25, 2015 02:56
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DrBouvenstein posted:Oh man, when I get home, I can take some pictures that make THAT portion of the tile job look good! What crackhead tiled this?
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Nov 25, 2015 14:55
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On the USB front, we use one of these 5 port chargers: http://www.amazon.com/Anker-Desktop-Charger-PowerIQ-Technology/dp/B00GTGETFG It has a cord to go into the wall so it can be at table height, and has enough ports to have a couple Lightning cables, a couple Micro-USB, and a Fitbit charger. If you use short cables (or wrap them up in veclro), it's nice and compact. (Also really good for travel.)
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Nov 25, 2015 15:17
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Was your bathroom built by Marty Feldman?
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Nov 25, 2015 16:12
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Yeah, the previous homeowner, in his infinite frugality, decided he didn't need to spend an extra $20 on things like tile spacers, a level, or even just a god-drat sort-of-straight piece of wood from the scrap pile at Lowe's to just push up against the tiles to straighten them out. The bathroom is definitely the worst of his DIY jobs, but ther's still plenty of other crap we have to deal with, including: Painted counters in the kitchen. The existing ones look original (from the 1970's,) and we can see they were originally pink, so while baby blue is a little better, the paint is stained and chipping in several places. A microwave above the stove that's about a foot too high. I don't know about you, but I don't care for taking hot soup out of a microwave that's almost above my head.  A few rooms have ethernet cables in them...great! Except he just drilled holes in the drywall and threaded them through...no need for things like wall plates or conduit or even properly rated interior wall cables, right? He actually painted some other rooms pretty well (from a technical point of view), but his color choices were...questionable:  This was one of the walls in the master bedroom. Our theory was that he didn't have enough yellow or red leftover from other rooms to paint this wall, so he just smeared them together...or something. For optimal clashing, the other 3 walls in the bedroom were blue: 
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Nov 25, 2015 17:39
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DrBouvenstein posted:He actually painted some other rooms pretty well (from a technical point of view), but his color choices were...questionable: Hollywood Movie Poster color theory. Nice.
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Nov 25, 2015 18:50
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Funny, I saw a GMC pickup this morning painted the same color as that orange/yellow. I mentally called it "true burnt orange"
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Nov 25, 2015 18:53
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DrBouvenstein posted:
Alereon fucked around with this message at 20:26 on Nov 25, 2015 |
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Nov 25, 2015 20:23
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I'm just not sure why someone would cover every surface of that poor closet in impossibly wide and thin slabs of bacon. e: also, mirrored closet doors 
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Nov 25, 2015 22:00
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I kinda like it, it reminds me of mulch.
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Nov 25, 2015 22:46
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Alereon posted:This screams "looked a lot better in the photos in the craft magazine/blog" to me, if you don't expand the thumbnail it almost looks nice-ish. I have a housemate that sometimes gets enamored with these ideas and I have to Google up pictures of normal peoples' results to dissuade her. Brown paper "hardwood" floors, anyone? Terrible reality. The "good news" pictures are the first ones...What was this person thinking? "Gosh, linoleum looks like poo poo, which suits my needs, but it's just too easy to lay down and I can't just dig it out of the trash"? JFC if you're going to insist on a project poly floor like that, put something cool down, not loving lovely paper.
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Nov 26, 2015 00:21
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Honestly? I don't think either of those floors looks terrible, really, but they do look like WAY too much effort for the effect achieved. Congrats, you're either an aspiring painter with way too much time and money (somehow?), or someone trying to emulate...I don't even know, marble maybe? It seems like either way you could just buy some actual wood and then put down your varnish/wax/poly/whatever on that since that's what the actual floor is anyways. And I don't know jack about poo poo, so if my estimation of the situation is accurate, there's a problem.
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Nov 26, 2015 00:48
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Alereon posted:This screams "looked a lot better in the photos in the craft magazine/blog" to me, if you don't expand the thumbnail it almost looks nice-ish. I have a housemate that sometimes gets enamored with these ideas and I have to Google up pictures of normal peoples' results to dissuade her. Brown paper "hardwood" floors, anyone? Terrible reality. So...she spent an entire weekend (though I'm skeptical that she laid underlayment over OSB along with everything else in that time period), probably $200 in materials, had to have destroyed at least one bucket, a couple squeegees, countless rags, paper towels, clothes and socks with the glue solution, and put down a vulnerable paper floor just so she could say "looks like wood, don't it? Well, it AIN'T!" Rather than spend less time and possibly the same amount of money putting down a PERGO knockoff that would have lasted ten times longer. poo poo, the time she spent overlaying the OSB, bingo: new floor. Wow.
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Nov 26, 2015 00:52
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| # ? May 14, 2024 07:38 |
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Both of those floors look "fine, they're fine" for what they are, the durability and effort expenditure is where i'd be concerned.
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Nov 26, 2015 02:21
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